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Digitised Documents from the Strahov Library

In 2019, the library of the Royal Canonry of Premonstratensians at Strahov provided access to 36 modern manuscripts and one early printed book – the Chronicle of Bohemia by Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini (Pope Pius II), which was translated and in 1510 printed by Mikuláš Konáč of Hodíštkov (shelf mark DR IV 10). The digitised manuscripts are deposited under shelf marks DA I–DA III and come from between the 17the and 19th centuries. They are varied in their content as well, including e.g. a set of liturgical manuscripts of Premonstratensian provenance, some acquired as late as in the 19th century in the area of present-day Germany; scientific treatises in the fields of natural sciences and the humanities (e.g. by the geologist Jan Tadeáš Antonín Peithner of Lichtenfels and the art historian Jan Jakub Quirin Jahn); a binder’s volume of letters by Jesuit missionaries and their copies (DA II 15); poems and short stories; a copy of works of music by the Cistercian Johann Georg Vogt (DA II 20); an illuminated Kunst-Buch der Pferde (DA II 22); copies of theological works and lectures coming from the Prague Archiepiscopal Seminary; records of lectures and sermons given by Bernard Bolzano in 1808–1818; copies of various prints and other texts.

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Manuscripts of the Works of Johann Joseph Rösler in the Archives of the Prague Conservatoire

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Medieval Manuscripts from the National Library of the Czech Republic

Another group of digitised documents from the NL CR comprises 19 medieval codices. The oldest of them is manuscript IV.D.7, which was mostly written around the middle of the 11th century in the scriptorium of the Břevnov monastery, the earliest documented scriptorium in the Czech lands; it contains homilies on the Gospels by Pope Gregory I. The other codices also come from the Czech lands. They were written in the 13th–15th centuries. They include theological works (i.a. by the Church Fathers Augustine, Jerome, Gregory and Isidore of Seville), Biblical exegeses (e.g. by Haimo of Auxerre, Honorius of Autun, Nicholas of Lyra, Nicholas of Gorran), preaching and to a lesser extent ecclesiastical-legal texts, rhetorical, astronomical and philosophical texts. Liturgical manuscripts are represented by a breviary from the second half of the 13th century (IV.D.9), which was, based on some rubrics, most likely used at the church of St Vitus at Prague Castle. Illuminated manuscripts include IV.D.10 (a figural initial depicting the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus, with two figures on the sides) and IV.E.19 (ornamental initials).

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Manuscripts from the North Bohemian Museum in Liberec

The North Bohemian Museum in Liberec digitised four modern manuscripts and a set of 27 official documents in 2018. The oldest manuscript is a workbook of poetics and grammar from the middle of the 17th century (Inv. No. ST 1753). Documents of official agenda comprise i.a. a book of the guild of drapers from Herrieden from 1729–1787 (Inv. No. ST 703) and the certificate of completed studies issued for Johann Georg Mayer (Inv. No. ST 241). The museum has further provided access to a set of guild statutes, baptismal certificates, vocational certificates, receipts and other documents (Inv. No. ST 143) from North Bohemia in 1527–1802.

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Manuscripts from the Library of the Benedictine Abbey in Rajhrad

In 2018, the library of the Benedictine Abbey in Rajhrad, administered by the Museum of the Brno Region, digitised five manuscripts, four of which were medieval. The oldest of them is a breviary (R 598), which was commissioned by the abbot of the Cistercian monastery in Sedlec Heidenreich in 1308. The Golden Legend by Blessed Jacobus da Varagin (R 350) comes from the first half of the 14th century as well. Another two manuscripts, containing a commentary on the Rule of St Benedict (R 348) and a part of a breviary (R 591), were written in the second half and at the end of the 14th century. Modern manuscripts are represented by the World Chronicle by Jan Nepomuk Klassing (R 356) from 1771, accompanied by numerous pen-and-ink drawings.

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An Early Printed Book from the Town Museum and Gallery Polička

The Town Museum and Gallery Polička has provided access to a printed book from 1576 (K 355). It is Kancionál český, a Czech Hymnbook or a Book of Evangelical Spiritual Songs by Jakub Kunvaldský, with adjoined Nešpor český, a Czech Book of Vesper Prayers Consisting of the Psalms of David by the same author. The beginning and end of the printed book have not been preserved and have been complemented by hand; further manuscript additions include A Song about the Prophetess Sibylla and other excerpts at the beginning of the volume.

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Printed Books and Manuscripts from the National Library of Medicine in Prague

Most of the recently digitised documents from the National Library of Medicine in Prague comprise printed theses defended at the Faculty of Medicine of the Prague university between 1682 and 1749. The manuscripts are represented by a medical anthology from the 18th century (T 277), including recipes, descriptions of the medicinal effects of plants, a treatise on bloodletting and other texts, and by a veterinary anthology from the 17th–18th centuries (T 333).

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Manuscripts and Printed Books from the Museum of the Jindřichův Hradec Region

The Museum of the Jindřichův Hradec Region provided access to six manuscripts and four early printed books in 2018. The manuscripts contain Czech- and German-language prayer books from the second half of the 18th century. A part of them are handwritten copies of printed books, with some even having their scribe or the place of their later use listed. The digitised printed books comprise collections of German prayers by Martin of Cochem and their Czech translations. The oldest of them comes from the printing workshop of Marie Barbora Svobodová from 1738, while the other three were editions were printed by Hynek (Ignác) Vojtěch Hilgartner in Jindřichův Hradec in the second half of the 18th century.

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Medieval Manuscripts from the National Library of the Czech Republic

The National Library of the CR has provided access to some medieval manuscripts. The oldest of them comes from the 12th century, but most of them were not written until the late Middle Ages. In terms of content, the works include the Bible and its exegeses (those whose authors have been identified comprise e.g. the manuscript III.F.18 by Nicholas of Lyra or the concordance of the Gospels by Mikuláš Biskupec of Pelhřimov in III.F.5), but also patristic and medical works (the extensive compendium by Gilbert of England in III.H.20), preaching, legal and ancient literature (Ovid’s works in III.H.24a–III.H.24c). Some manuscripts are interesting not only for their content but also for their information on former owners: the owner of the codex III.G.1 was Vojtěch Raňkův of Ježov, who had probably acquired it during his work in Paris; the manuscript III.E.34 is one of the few manuscripts that have been preserved from the library of the Reček College (Collegium sanctissimae Mariae) of the Prague university.

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Early Printed Books from the National Technical Library

Národní technická knihovna zpřístupnila v roce 2018 devět starých tisků. Nejstarším z nich je italský překlad Eukleidova díla, vytištěný v Benátkách v roce 1585 (A 232); z Basileje z roku 1678 pochází pojednání o trigonometrii Georga Friedricha Meyera s četnými dřevořezy (A 241). Ostatní tisky vznikly v 18. století, převážně v Německu a jeden další rovněž v Itálii. Po obsahové stránce jde o texty matematické, ale také o prezentace vynálezů, které měly sloužit k pobavení.

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